close
cantaloupe

What is cantaloupe

Cantaloupe (Cucumis melo species in the Cucurbitaceae family) also known as muskmelon (India and the United States), mushmelon, rockmelon, sweet melon, or spanspek (South Africa) 1. Cantaloupes range in weight from 0.5 to 5 kilograms (1 to 11 lb). Originally, cantaloupe referred only to the non-netted, orange-fleshed melons of Europe. However, in more recent usage it has come to mean any orange-fleshed melon of Cucumis melo, and has become the most popular melon in North America.

Cantaloupe is normally eaten as a fresh fruit, as a salad, or as a dessert with ice cream or custard. Melon pieces wrapped in prosciutto are a familiar antipasto.

Because the surface of a cantaloupe can contain harmful bacteria—in particular, Salmonella 2, it is recommended to wash and scrub a melon thoroughly before cutting and consumption. The fruit should be refrigerated after cutting it and consumed in less than three days to prevent risk of Salmonella or other bacterial pathogens.

Phytochemical analysis of cantaloupe showed the presence of flavonoids, phenols and saponins 3. These phytochemical constituents present in the hydro-methanol extract of cantaloupe seeds and the exact mechanism need to be evaluated.

Figure 1. Cantaloupe

cantaloupe

Cantaloupe nutrition facts

Raw cantaloupe is 90% water, 8% carbohydrates, 0.8% protein and 0.3% fat, providing 140 kJ (34 kcal) and 2020 μg of the provitamin A orange carotenoid, beta-carotene per 100 grams. Fresh cantaloupe is a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value or DV) of vitamin C (44% DV) and vitamin A (21% DV), with other nutrients in negligible amounts (less than 10% DV).

Table 1. Cantaloupe (raw) nutrition facts

NutrientUnitValue per 100 g
Approximates
Waterg90.15
Energykcal34
EnergykJ141
Proteing0.84
Total lipid (fat)g0.19
Ashg0.65
Carbohydrate, by differenceg8.16
Fiber, total dietaryg0.9
Sugars, totalg7.86
Sucroseg4.35
Glucose (dextrose)g1.54
Fructoseg1.87
Lactoseg0
Maltoseg0.04
Galactoseg0.06
Starchg0.03
Minerals
Calcium, Camg9
Iron, Femg0.21
Magnesium, Mgmg12
Phosphorus, Pmg15
Potassium, Kmg267
Sodium, Namg16
Zinc, Znmg0.18
Copper, Cumg0.041
Manganese, Mnmg0.041
Selenium, Seµg0.4
Fluoride, Fµg1
Vitamins
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acidmg36.7
Thiaminmg0.041
Riboflavinmg0.019
Niacinmg0.734
Pantothenic acidmg0.105
Vitamin B-6mg0.072
Folate, totalµg21
Folic acidµg0
Folate, foodµg21
Folate, DFEµg21
Choline, totalmg7.6
Betainemg0.1
Vitamin B-12µg0
Vitamin B-12, addedµg0
Vitamin A, RAEµg169
Retinolµg0
Carotene, betaµg2020
Carotene, alphaµg16
Cryptoxanthin, betaµg1
Vitamin A, IUIU3382
Lycopeneµg0
Lutein + zeaxanthinµg26
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)mg0.05
Vitamin E, addedmg0
Tocopherol, betamg0
Tocopherol, gammamg0.11
Tocopherol, deltamg0
Vitamin D (D2 + D3)µg0
Vitamin DIU0
Vitamin K (phylloquinone)µg2.5
Lipids
Fatty acids, total saturatedg0.051
04:00:00g0
06:00:00g0
08:00:00g0
10:00:00g0
12:00:00g0.001
14:00:00g0.001
16:00:00g0.043
18:00:00g0.005
Fatty acids, total monounsaturatedg0.003
16:1 undifferentiatedg0
18:1 undifferentiatedg0.003
20:01:00g0
22:1 undifferentiatedg0
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturatedg0.081
18:2 undifferentiatedg0.035
18:3 undifferentiatedg0.046
18:04:00g0
20:4 undifferentiatedg0
20:5 n-3 (EPA)g0
22:5 n-3 (DPA)g0
22:6 n-3 (DHA)g0
Fatty acids, total transg0
Cholesterolmg0
Phytosterolsmg10
Amino Acids
Tryptophang0.002
Threonineg0.017
Isoleucineg0.021
Leucineg0.029
Lysineg0.03
Methionineg0.012
Cystineg0.002
Phenylalanineg0.023
Tyrosineg0.014
Valineg0.033
Arginineg0.029
Histidineg0.015
Alanineg0.095
Aspartic acidg0.136
Glutamic acidg0.209
Glycineg0.026
Prolineg0.019
Serineg0.042
Other
Alcohol, ethylg0
Caffeinemg0
Theobrominemg0
Anthocyanidins
Cyanidinmg0
Petunidinmg0
Delphinidinmg0
Malvidinmg0
Pelargonidinmg0
Peonidinmg0
Flavan-3-ols
(+)-Catechinmg0
(-)-Epigallocatechinmg0
(-)-Epicatechinmg0
(-)-Epicatechin 3-gallatemg0
(-)-Epigallocatechin 3-gallatemg0
(+)-Gallocatechinmg0
Flavanones
Hesperetinmg0
Naringeninmg0
Flavones
Apigeninmg0
Luteolinmg0.6
Flavonols
Kaempferolmg0.1
Myricetinmg0
Quercetinmg0
Isoflavones
Daidzeinmg0
Genisteinmg0
Glyciteinmg0
Total isoflavonesmg0
Formononetinmg0
Coumestrolmg0
Proanthocyanidin
Proanthocyanidin dimersmg0
Proanthocyanidin trimersmg0
Proanthocyanidin 4-6mersmg0
Proanthocyanidin 7-10mersmg0
Proanthocyanidin polymers (>10mers)mg0
[Source 4]
  1. Gur A, Tzuri G, Meir A, et al. Genome-Wide Linkage-Disequilibrium Mapping to the Candidate Gene Level in Melon (Cucumis melo). Scientific Reports. 2017;7:9770. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-09987-4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5575340/[]
  2. A multi-state outbreak of Salmonella Saintpaul in Australia associated with cantaloupe consumption. Epidemiol Infect. 2009 Mar;137(3):367-74. doi: 10.1017/S0950268808000861. Epub 2009 Feb 9. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/epidemiology-and-infection/article/multistate-outbreak-of-salmonella-saintpaul-in-australia-associated-with-cantaloupe-consumption/7E3C7974D27F3D711D7E27BF87F444BB[]
  3. Antipyretic effects of hydro-methanol extract of Melia azedarach Linn. seeds and Cucumis melo Linn. seeds in experimental rabbits. Pak J Pharm Sci. 2017 Jul;30(4):1257-1261. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29039323[]
  4. United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Release 28. https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list[]
Health Jade Team

The author Health Jade Team

Health Jade